Running on Empty//Closed; Kay

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence released a painful sigh. The burn was stinging as a result of both the cream and wet cloth being applied to it. She squeezed her eyes shut as an excruciating round hit her. That, combined with her elbow and certain spots on her hips, caused her upper half to feel like a dartboard. Each of the affect spots had been one of the targets the d needle had landed on. The same areas were continuously being shot at over and over. Dropping the hand from her face, she chose to ball it up instead. She felt like sending her fist through the wall. It’d be inaudible due to the intensity of the storm outside. Anything to assuage the pain that was coursing through her body. Realizing that her hand would be added to the list of wounded appendages, Kaydence released it and instead shuffled over to the wall. Switching hands, she placed the one that had been holding the cloth up against the wall and leaned into it. She hadn’t been hurting this bad after the initial injuring of both spots. Then again, she had been considerably distracted given the circumstances. She could have very likely been in as much pain as she was now. Her mind had just brought other things to her attention.

”How bad is it?” His voice had come from the other side of the door. Kaydence shook her head slowly. He never knew when to stop, did he? This was what, the third time she had gone off for some time to herself and he had followed? He sounded sympathetic, but that’s not what Kaydence wanted right now. She thanked Merlin that he had at least sounded like himself and not that dreadful character that had temporarily taken over his body minutes earlier. She remained silent, unsure of what to say or do next. "Dammit Kaydence, Answer me." She continued not too. Easing her hand slightly off of the burn, she breathed in deeply. She had been forced to suffer for several minutes, but the pain was finally starting to show some signs of accepting the medicine she was trying to soothe it with. Wiping the last few remnants of tears from underneath her eyes Kaydence looked around her bathroom. "Kaydence if you don't answer me, I'm going to break this door down.” She quirked a brow in his direction. What was he talking about? The door wasn’t even unlocked. Keeping her back turned, she contemplated turning around to see if he’d actually do it. She could no doubt use the laugh, but she wonder if the body that‘d be picking itself off the floor would be Ashton’s or if it would transfigure into Cillian again.

He called her name again. The tone in his voice and distance suggested that he was actually going to do it. Turning her head to look over her shoulder, she waited. Secretly, she hoped it would. The cost of replacing her door would be a mere step in what it would take to pay her back for all the damage he had inflicted. On the other side of the spectrum, Kaydence was perplexed as to why he was still trying to get to her. There was no trace of threatening in his voice. Was this perhaps some joke he was playing to get her trust? He could have been doing all this to bring her guard down and as soon as he appeared through the door he’d be have her pinned up against the wall. His hands slowly sliding down her throat, determining which angle that he sunk his fingertips into would cause her the most crippling affliction. Perhaps he was being completely genuine. Maybe he was concerned for her and his only motives for breaking down her door where to get to her and console her, apologize for the pain he had caused and to hold her. Kaydence wondered if it was normal for a human being to have this much doubt constantly cast. Paranoia was starting to sink in again. Looking straight ahead at the wall, she hoped he would just leave her alone.

”Kaydence?” His voice was definitely not on the other side of the wall now. The sound of the doorknob turning had indicated to her that he had finally figured out that she hadn’t locked herself in after all. She was still standing close to the door, but couldn’t move. Her feet were stuck to the spot, suddenly terrified that she was going to once again feel his wrath. Kaydence could feel his hand lingering behind her. She yearned for him to touch her. One touch would be all she needed to force herself out of this stupor. She’d have him on his back before he knew it. Envisioning her slamming his head repeatedly into the tile Kaydence tried her hardest to stir the anger she knew was still there. But she couldn’t prevail. As much as she wanted to hurt him for what he had done, she wanted his comforting more. Merlin she couldn’t keep her priorities straight. Tears clouded her vision, but she did her best to restrain them. It had been a mistake to let him see her cry. She didn’t need it to happen again. The only sounds in the bathroom were the bathroom door being closed gently shut and oxygen behind exhaled from their lungs. Kaydence could feel his presence in the confined space with her now. Her breathing increased, undecided of whether she should acknowledge him or not.

She turned her eyes to the mirror at the exact moment he did. Her mascara had run and left dark splotches down her cheeks. Her eyes were still red though considerably dimmer. Ashton’s face looked pained. Did he have his own regrets of hurting her? ”Does it hurt much?” She wanted to yell, say some smartass comment in response to his question. Her heart was telling her something different. Whether she liked it or not, Kaydence had been the one to start this fight. She had been bored and wanted to see what lengths she could push him. It was her fault that the monster within him had been uncaged. Her injuries may have been caused by him, but they were the result of what she had made him be. “Indescribably,” she finally acknowledged quietly. “At least it’s not bleeding.” Kaydence turn a moment to look down at the cloth. The red smears had not been there before. “Maybe not.” Merlin it was going to hurt so bad in the morning.

Turning around to fully face him, Kaydence made sure to keep at least some distance between the two. “If you came here looking for the finale, I’m not going to give it you,” she informed him, with no trace of arrogance in her voice. She sounded defeated, but that’s because she was. There were no traces of a fight within her. Any strength and overconfidence that she did have had receded back to where they had come from. She wanted to say that she was sorry for what she had done, but was too prideful to say anything just yet. She hoped he would understand. It wasn’t like she didn’t want to…she just didn’t know how to. Not this early in whatever was left of their relationship. “I would just really like to go to bed,” Kaydence admitted, looking in the direction of the bathroom door “and see if that stupid movie is on again.” She slowly slinked to the bathroom counter. Tossing her used washcloth to the side Kaydence bent over as far as her injury would let her and grabbed another one to replace it. Turning the faucet on, she dampened it and settled it back on the area. “I don’t care what you do. Apparate back to the resort, go in my living room, eat my food…I don’t care.” And it was the truth. As long as she could rest without a fight rearing its ugly head in her direction then he could have set any other room besides her own on fire. Kaydence hoped he wouldn’t, given that she would be disturbed knowing that she would instantly have to clean up any smoke and fire damage. It was bad enough that there was still blood on the carpet fibers. That was going to be extraordinarily difficult to get out.

Attempting to meet his gaze again she waited for his response.

[Ashton Wentworth]

Ashton had been here before, not literally but he knew, that had stood over the same pained expression dozens of times. As a child he never would have expected these emotions to ever live within his chest, the younger version of him most likely would have tried to kick the crap out of this shell of himself. The dormant side of him still saw the situation as weak, beneath him. It viewed the woman in front of him as something less than human, not to be desired because it had lost, a broken toy. He shouldn't have had to take the time to repair what somebody had obviously broken. Thankfully that part wasn't in control of his actions, nobody had been there to fix him whenever he had needed it. Nobody had been there to stand by his side and pat him across his shoulder blades. Tell him to rub some dirt in it, to 'buck up' so he had wallowed. Warren had been of little to no help to him on that front, he was just as dark and twisty as Ashton was now. He had mocked his friend for years, for allowing some girl to get under his skin like that, to fall in 'love' or whatever the useless word was. Until he had felt it, it was only lucky that Warren was not the gloating type. As he stood now, standing next to Kaydence he wished that there had been somebody that would have been able to fix Georgie, since he hadn't been able to. Somebody to have gotten through to her, made her do what was right to save herself. Somebody with a level head and no temper. Somebody who could sit with her as she tried to kill herself over and over again. Who could hold her hand and tell her that it was going to be alright. He could never be that man, as much as he longed to be it for somebody, anybody he never could be.

His features softened as his chest ached for a response. He was already sorry for what he had done, even if she had provoked him for no reason, he had no right to go off on her like that, and now she was battered and he was the one who had made her that way. Chewing on the inside of his cheek he began tugging at his ring finger behind his back. He couldn't apologize if his life had depended upon it, it was written all over his face though the words would never come. “Indescribably,” He lowered his head, he had wanted her to yell at him, to scream or cry he wanted to still be angry with her, to be so upset that he storms out of the apartment never to see her again, anything to shirk having to take responsibility for his actions. “At least it’s not bleeding.” Glancing down to the cloth held in place by her hand he said nothing, reaching out to touch her his fingers tenderly checking the cloth to maximize the space it was covering. Not much, but he really did want to help. He had never felt so awkward in his life, he had never lashed out at a woman for no reason before. Georgie had always provoked him, pushing and pushing, more often than not she picked little fights just because she wanted him to talk, she wanted the passion, the fire that came after the fights. She was just as insatiable as he was. It was different here, whereas before he would comply, use the remainder of his energy 'making up' with her and then brood for weeks. It seemed like their whole relationship had been nothing more than one continuous fight. Whenever they weren't making love that was, if it could really be called that. Standing next to this woman, who obviously had baggage that could rival his own. “Maybe not.” His eyes tore away from the mark he had left on her body and lifted to her eyes.

“If you came here looking for the finale, I’m not going to give it you,” Her tone was soft, quiet, defeated. It sounded the way that he felt inside, he had burned through so much heat in a short time span he felt mentally exhausted. Placing his hand back behind his back, resuming his nervous fidgeting. “I would just really like to go to bed,” Apparently she was just as good at confronting problems as he was. Nodding once he stepped aside so that she could leave the bathroom if she wanted to, she wasn't making him go, not that he would have if she had asked him to. It was a start, the elephant in the room seemed to be growing larger by the second. “and see if that stupid movie is on again.” He didn't look up until he heard the water running, taking the cloth from her hand once she had wrung the excess liquid from it and took a long look at the burn on her back, he wanted to wince for her as he placed the cloth onto her back, pressing softly at the edges, trying to make it stick on it's own to no avail. “I don’t care what you do. Apparate back to the resort, go in my living room, eat my food…I don’t care.” She seemed to be telling the truth, he scanned her eyes for any hint of a hidden truth, a signal telling him what she was really wanting him to say but couldn't see any. She was such a strange creature. The only thing that he could derive from her face was that she had made her mind up, and he was off the hook. He moved a hand to hover just between her shoulder blades, bouncing on the air once as he debated weather or not he should risk touching her. Risking it, he pulled her body closer, other hand making it's way to the back of her neck. Compressing her hair against her skin, his lips finding their way to her own. Soft and sweet, a closed lip kiss he held for a second before releasing her neck and holding her as close to his body as he could with minimal pressure.

He didn't much care at this point if she wanted to oppose, he was going to hold her there. Weather she bit into his shoulder, pushed with all her might or cried into his skin he didn't care. This was the only form of apology that he could muster and mean it. Ashton couldn't explain the draw that he had to Kaydence, or why he was still here. If they had met at a different time in his life, he would have run in the other direction at the very first sight of tears. If she had started a fight he would have just walked away, maybe screamed at her for even bringing him here in the first place. He wouldn't have dealt with it, just went to the nearest dive and forced himself to forget about it. Timing really was on her side. It would have just been so easy this morning had it not been for the tension, they were both so concerned with not letting the other in it was going to ruin any chance that they really had with one another. Frowning, he moved out of the bathroom ahead of her. Heading to her bed he pulled the sheets back on the side of the bed that he had not woken up on this morning, so he assumed that was her preferred side. Sitting on 'his' side he ran his hands down his face, and allowed them to rest in his lap. Exhaling deeply he glanced around her room, he didn't turn the television on for her, because he didn't want to listen to the noise of people talking. The rain was really coming down, thunder could be heard every few moments, lightning coming flickering in through the gaps in her still closed curtains. He found himself watching her, she was strong, no doubt about that. But he couldn't see the reason for her hysterics, even as he replayed the moments before in his head, he had hurt her, but not to cause a panic that deep seated. He didn't dare bring it up.

Rising to his feet again he crossed to where she was, lips parting to speak. When the power went out. The roar of the air conditioning was silenced almost instantly, his want was back in his suite, so he had no source of light other than what was coming in from the lightening outside. He hoped it would return within a matter of minutes but with a storm like this there really was no telling exactly what was going to happen. "Kaydence?" He called, wanting to make sure that she was alright, not frightened or anything of the like he stumbled back to the bathroom door "You alright?" fumbling around in the dark he searched for his hand, wanting to take advantage of the darkness and the fact that she could no longer see his face. Finding her hand after some scrambling he pulled her close, content to just hold her.

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence flinched slightly as Ashton moved closer to her. She wasn’t afraid of him anymore, but the reaction was automatic. She doubted she could be blamed if he knew the reason why she had gotten so upset. If he did, she was sure he would have felt disgusted with himself even though he had done nothing wrong. He had not willed himself into transfiguring into Cillian and her apartment into Blackstone. The fact that she was living so close to the spot suddenly dawned on her. Even though she could only see the beach from her patio, the wooded area that had been magically placed on the island was nearby. It took quite a long walk to reach the camping grounds and an even longer one to that particular spot, but knowing that it was so close struck fear into her heart. Doyle hadn’t been seen since that night and had presumably left the country for good. He had told her that he was done with her after what he did to her. The look in his eyes reflected his sick sincerity. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her anxiety had already gotten the best of her. It didn’t need to do the same twice.

As he took the washcloth from her hand Kaydence stared at him through the reflection of her mirror. Her hands gripped into the counter, bracing herself from the pain that was sure to come. But it didn’t. Ashton dabbed at the area on her back with such tender care that for a second she forgotten the monster he had become earlier. “Thanks,” she mumbled. The action spoke words about his character. There may have been a horrifying identity underneath his skin, but the side now, the one that she had seen earlier, still existed. It was the one that Kaydence preferred. The one who seemed more concerned with her than he was with himself. She allowed herself to be caressed as his hands crossed into familiar territory. The kiss he gave her was short, but undoubtedly appropriate. She returned it with as much enthusiasm as she could. She burrowed her head into his shoulder as he pulled is face away from hers and held her. The pain in her back was no longer a concern to her. For now, all her attention was on the man in front of her.

He pulled away abruptly, leaving Kaydence with a yearning for his return. She walked closer to the door, exposing her bedroom and everything he was doing within it. Her heart began to melt while she watched him pull back the sheets on her bed for her. The feeling coursing through her body was indescribable and at this point in time, she wanted to waste no effort to explore it. A small smile formed on her face as he sat down on his side. His side. That was something she could get used to. She imagined him staying over and waking up next to him the way she had this morning, without the nightmares being the abrupt awakening. Kaydence considered asking him to stay the night again to see the image up close, but refrained from doing so. She wouldn’t take that next step until she was absolutely sure that no future fights would ruin whatever of a night they had left together. Given their stubborn personalities, it wouldn’t have been surprising. She earnestly hoped for the best. The time spent on good terms was far better than it spent on the bad.

The storm was so intense outside that Kaydence should have expected the power going on. Due to the events that had taken place, it had slipped from her mind. Finding herself in a blanket of darkness, her anxiety reared its ugly head in her direction. Usually she never had a problem with the dark. After she had been raped, it had taken awhile for her to get used to sleeping alone, but she had prevailed months down the road. Being alone in the dark while the weather was horrid was a different story. The wind whistled and hit the sides of the building with such force that she could hear the pictures shaking on her bedroom walls. Her heart began to race. The uncertainty of what could happen was making her paranoid. Would he come back to haunt her again? Kaydence felt alone. Her knees began to buckle, certain that when she hit the floor she was going to go into hysterics. Thankfully, she never got the chance to find out. ”Kaydence?” She gasped at the sound of his voice. She wanted him to find her. Raising her arm out in front of her she began to slowly walk in the direction she thought was the door. It didn’t take long to hear Ashton’s voice come closer to her. ”You alright?” She’d know the answer to that question whenever she got to him. Suddenly his hand found hers. Allowing herself to be pulled into him, she wrapped her arms around his torso and held on. She felt safe again.

It was amazing how things had changed so quickly for them once again. Later, she would take the time to evaluate the episodes of the day. For now, she didn’t need to think about how strange the two of them together were. They seemed content on not knowing the lives behind their names. Kaydence didn’t know about him, but she had never been interested in a person that she knew nothing about. Surely there had to be a reason behind it. If so, it wouldn’t be exposed to her until much further down the road. At this point, she had to accept that Ashton lived in the now and she was at ease with doing the same. It felt much more comfortable to her. Obsessing over a person’s background and baggage had done nothing but push her away from suitors in the past. Back then, it all seemed necessary. Kaydence never allowed her feelings to just take over and see what happened. Ashton was forcing her to do it now. He had no idea the doors he would open for her, but she would be forever grateful for the outlook he had given her.

Lifting her head from his shoulder Kaydence used her fingertips to find his face. There was something about the dark that made things, dare she say, romantic. Finding his cheeks, she stroked them with both of her hands. The sudden urge to kiss him hit and she went with it. She found his lips rather quickly and feverishly kissed him. The emotion behind the kiss was undeniable, but if he saw it, she prayed he would just go with it. Pushing him back into the bedroom Kaydence brought them into even more darkness. She could see the faint hint of light from the crack between her drapes, but other than that, nothing. The safety that Ashton provided was enough to keep her intensity going. Pushing him back onto the bed Kaydence crawled on the top of the mattress herself. She gave him a moment to breath before exploring his body with her hands once more. She had no reasoning for this sudden burst of lust, but she didn’t think he would mind it. The look on both of their faces had shown they were tired of the fighting just as much as the other. As they found themselves to her pillows Kaydence slid on top of him. She was content with her position now. She could have spent the remainder of the night kissing him and she would have been satisfied. Plus she didn’t want to push whatever luck she had been temporarily given.

Her lips found their way to his neck as they had earlier in the night. From there, she moved down to his stomach until they were underneath his belly button. She followed the same path she had taken down up until she was at his face. Grabbing the sides of his cheek, she gave him one more passionate kiss before lifting herself up and off of him. There were so many things she wanted to do to him, but there was still that sense of uncertainly lingering above them. Kaydence rolled onto her side as not to put any pressure on her back, but was at an angle where she could still see his faint outline. She was glad that his face wasn’t exposed. The mystery that he had displayed when she had first met him had reappeared and she liked it. Biting down on her lower lip, she placed her hands underneath her head, listening to the sounds of the rain and wind hitting her windows. “I’m surprised the building is still standing with all that momentum out there.” She still felt awkward saying anything to him.

[Ashton Wentworth]

Here he was, yet another place that he really didn't belong. His body was betraying him. His arms were holding her against his own will, his mind was screaming at him not to let himself get too attached, that he should just make sure that she's alright and head back to his suite. Make sure none of the house elves were robbing him or anything of the like, he needed to go. Run down the beach, possibly even get hit by lightning, anything could be exponentially better than standing here with her in the dark, He didn't have to force down his emotions because she couldn't hope to see them any way. His arms wrapped around her small shoulders as he held her against his chest, her head tucked into his neck, her sweet breath blowing against his clavicles. It was all to much, as he commanded his arms to release her, even to force her away, tear his body away from hers they wouldn't listen to him. They were blatantly refusing to do his bidding. The most that they had allowed him was a brief reprieve as he had gone into the room before the power had gone off. The darkness was such a welcome change to their evening, now she could cry if she wanted to, she could let her beautiful eyes swim and not worry if he was going to think less of her. He would be able to stare at her figure as long as he wanted until he was forced to blink, he could just sit in silence and not worry about how she was feeling or what her face really meant. He could gaze into her eyes endlessly if he so chose, at least until the power came back on. It might have been the best possible thing for them, this welcome darkness to cover up the metaphorical darkness that had preceded it. As his body had betrayed him once again by seeking out her warmth she had clung to him. His smile was sweet as her hands wrapped around his body.

His skin tightened and heat flushed his cheeks, it was childish how comforted he felt by her body. Thankful for the darkness he pulled her closer. Ashton had never been actively interested in any body else before. He had been ever so content not knowing anything about the women that he bedded, the few people that managed to stay in his life were few and far between. Those that were able to tolerate his presence for any extended amount of time he figured that he would learn their story over time. He never had needed to ask questions to anybody, and he never needed to pursue their life story. The longer he spent in their company, details were bound to come out, people just loved to talk about themselves. Aside from Georgie (Who had found out about his life by snooping and incessantly asking questions) whatever other people knew about Ashton's very colorful history was because they had been there to witness it first hand. It became much more difficult to hide things from people who witnessed the events first hand. With Kaydence, he was actually more than moderately interested in why a girl like her lived here all alone when she obviously came from money. He knew that she loved to shop, but she didn't seem to have a job that supported her habits. No job meant family money, but who was her family. They had managed to miss each other for the most of their lives, so what exactly was she doing? Obviously she had gone to classes to become Head Girl, but there were so many gaps in her story but he didn't feel that it was his place to ask. Even if he had, her mood ran so hot and cold it was only a 50/50 chance if she would even answer him, much less tell him the truth.

He felt fingertips on his face, and he tilted down to look at her, not being able to make out her face he stooped his shoulders to be closer, for all he knew he was gazing at the skin on her shoulder, allowing her fingers to guide him to her lips. As they connected he sunk into her body as best as he could without holding her too tight. There was something different in her lips, something tender and raw, embracing it he moved his hands, he wanted to grasp her and pull her closer but not willing to risk his hands pressing on the raw skin of her back. She was building momentum, and took it upon herself to lead him backwards. Normally, he was the one to start things and he never minded, but this was an interesting change. As his calves connected with the bed frame he fell backwards onto the soft bedding. Her weight on his chest was soon to follow, she was crawling over him, bear crawling his way backwards he attempted to keep his body beneath hers, matching her pace until his head hit pillow. He didn't much feel like putting his head through a wall and stopped. Luckily she seemed to get the same idea. As her lips moved south of his lips he almost groaned whenever he felt them coming back up but suppressed it, letting only the most faint noises leave him. He couldn't stop the noise as she moved off of his body and came to rest beside him. Turning half way onto his side to face her he let the arm on the bottom of his body slide under her pillow and thus under her head. He let his hand slide from the furthest part of her leg he could reach up to her hip, where it rested, sitting comfortably. He didn't feel the need to say anything thing, and he was fairly certain that she wasn't expecting any sort of apology from him, if she was she really was sending all of the wrong signals.

He wanted to ask her some questions, but he wasn't yet sure that the worst was behind him. Try as he might his temper was a wild and unpredictable thing, it was likely to lash out at any moment, so he was wary of conversation until he was sure it had gone to bed for the night. He might as well be living with two people inside of his skull. Unfortunately, the power being out meant that there was going to be no distractions available. Fight or flight. His face leaned closer to hers, pillow crinkling softly as he moved, hovering less than an inch away from what he guessed was her lips he paused, he wanted to kiss her again, he wanted to pull her closer, wrap her small body in his arms but now it seemed that they were too nervous. Luckily, he didn't need to close the distance because she hadn't seemed to notice that he was freaking out internally. “I’m surprised the building is still standing with all that momentum out there.” A smirk flashed and disappeared as he returned to his resting position on the pillow. Using the arm under her pillow to pull her closer, his hand on her hip remained, drumming incomprehensible patterns into her pants. He wasn't good at small talk, but he could try. It just had always seemed pointless to him, if the conversation didn't have a real point then he just never had seen the point in holding one. It infuriated most people. Resting his chin atop of her head he twirled a piece of stray hair behind her head with his supporting arm. He supposed though, if she really wanted to talk he shouldn't add to the tension by ignoring her, there was no possible way that he could pretend not to of heard her since they were less than two inches apart. The storm raging out side showed no signs of letting up any time soon and while he was drained there was no chance of sleep in his foreseeable future. "It just seems to be getting worse, they might actually shut down the beach" he agreed. It was a long shot, but it was possible. Who knew that the water was going to churn up during the course of the night. "You're not scared of the dark are you" He teased, hoping that she would accept that he was attempting to lighten the mood, he enjoyed laying here with her, even if he would rather die than admit that he was becoming attached to her. "Don't worry" He boasted "I will protect you" It had started as a joke, he really was attempting to make her feel better, but he meant every word.

[Kaydence Morgan]

All of this was so confusing. As much of a thrill that Kaydence was getting from the mystery surrounding the two of them, her worry was starting to grow. The last time they had gotten themselves comfortable, their blowout of epic proportions had happened. The pulsating ache on her lower back was a reminder of it. She doubted if any more of her body parts could handle serious injury. Plus, she was tired of fighting for the day. With that said, she would still defend herself if need be. She couldn’t deny the adrenaline rush Ashton gave her. As sickening as it was, she liked being kept in suspense. He always kept her guessing which side she was going to see next. Although she favored the side he was letting her see now, the other kept her on her toes. It pleased her to know that she still had fight in her and that she wasn’t afraid to go face-to-face with him as long as he didn’t morph into Doyle. The fight reminded her that she wasn’t as broken as Kaydence thought she was. She wasn’t some weak woman who held her tongue and knew her place. Actually, she did know what it was. It was right in front of him. Hands on hips, face centimeters away from him with that same glare on her face… she was sure he was used to by now. Kaydence wondered if it angered him. It probably did, but she wouldn’t ask. At least not now anyway.

An hour or so earlier, she had been the one to ruin whatever moment it was that they were having. She refused to allow the same to happen again. If anybody was going to be the one to muck things up this time around, she was going to let it be Ashton. As she thought about it she felt one arm go underneath her pillow and the other rest on her thigh. Kaydence was grateful for the darkness. Because of it, he wouldn’t be able to see the strange expression on her face. She wanted to ease herself into him. She wanted to smell the faint traces of cologne that still lingered around his neck. But she was nervous. Unless he did otherwise, Kaydence had no desire to say anything that would put this whole situation jeopardy. Sighing, she made a face. She wondered if there would be any point down the road if they would be able to be fully complacent in the other’s presence. It would be nice. Almost certainly a lot less stress on them as well. Was it possible for all stress to be completely eliminated for her life though? Since her last year at Galaxia, it hadn’t been. Her time away had alleviated a bit of the load, but not fully. Kaydence never realized until coming back here how much she missed her youth. The times when all she had to do was worry about what to wear under her school robes, or which boy she wanted to go on a date with that night were long gone. Now she had to worry about whether or not her brother wanted to kill her or how she was going to do the same to him.

She was surprised when he had responded to her comment. Kaydence was aware he didn’t do the whole small talk thing. Unless the conversation was about her coming over or the food in her kitchen, Ashton never really had anything to say. She had gotten used to it already. When she had spoken up, it had been automatic. The tension between the two of them was starting to fade, but they both knew that the remnants were still bouncing about. She wanted to do anything to get them back to earlier. It was clear that neither one of them wanted to spend their whole night fighting. The only other thing they could have done was temporarily put on hold until her back healed up a bit. She would need as much energy and stamina as she could muster. While she knew that she could handle it, she didn’t want the pain in her back to get in the way. The frustration that it would give the two could potentially arouse another fight. Hopefully he wouldn’t mind giving her injury a little more time to settle. Besides, maybe it wouldn’t be a bad thing for them to do something other than sleep with each other. Then again, maybe it would. They had a hard time conversating outside of the bedroom anyway.

His fingers playing with her hair was calming. Letting her eyes close Kaydence moved her head closer to his as his chin perched on top of her own. ”You’re not scared of the dark are you?” She chuckled nervously. “No,” she lied, “just scared of what’s in it.” She was joking about the last part and poked Ashton in his stomach to show that she was. On the other hand, it wasn’t a complete fib. In the darkness, she had no idea what was coming for her. She was in it with a mentally unstable man. If he chose to attack, she would be defenseless. For all she knew, she could have another spell. Any moment, the scene from the night could flash in front of her eyes. She could freak out, cry, the possibilities were endless. Kaydence had enough embarrassment for one night. It was doubtful that she could handle anymore. ”Don’t worry. I will protect you.” If it hadn’t been for their close proximity, Kaydence would have gasped. She was surely taking it the wrong way, but she could have sworn to have heard sincerity in his voice. Raising her arm, she draped it across his side, inching further into his body. Grabbing onto the back of his shoulder she held him. He had no idea what those words meant to her. Even if he was only joking, Ashton gave her a sense of reassurance. It had been a long time since she had felt anything similar to it from another human being. It was worth the risk to have her own moment.

“If you insist,” she finally responded, letting him go as she did. Wiggling her head away from under his chin Kaydence looked up and smiled. A clap of thunder shook the room a bit. The storm continued to make sure they knew that it was still wallowing around them. And Kaydence was glad it did. What had ignited their fight had now brought it to where they were and she was grateful for it. “But maybe I’m not the only one who needs protection. I’m pretty good at defending myself.” Before he could respond, she took the opportunity to capture his lips with her own again.

[Ashton Wentworth]

The second the words left his lips he began to regret them, he hoped that she was going to take the words as he had said them and not how he had meant them. Merlin how on earth could he be feeling this way about somebody that he hardly knew. He didn't acknowledge her joke with anything other than a smile that she was unlikely to see. His mind churned over possible outcomes, ways that she might take it if she were him. Just as he expected her to twist out of his arms, she moved closer to him, her hands warm against his cool skin. Her touch was welcome as the insecure thoughts covered his face, he could only hope that she didn't notice. As much as he could never admit it, he enjoyed having the company of just one woman. He wasn't monogamous, he didn't know how to be. It wasn't like he had a stable relationship in his life to follow. He hadn't had a single role model in his life, nor any person that he could even grown next to due to the fact that almost nobody stayed in his life longer than a couple of years. Maybe make some guest appearances somewhere down the line, but nobody had yet to stick. He wasn't sure what he would do if somebody did decide to claw their way into his life. Assuming that it was nothing more than the hole that the damned woman had left in her wake sparking up again he waited for a response, shoving the emotions back down to where they had been born. “If you insist,” Well, at least she wasn't shooting him down, she began to drift away, her actions saying something different than what her lips just had but he decided not to call her on it. Letting her go, he considered rolling back over and pushing his face down into the divine pillow and falling asleep since there was no chance of getting out of here tonight. He didn't dare to venture out into this weather, the storm was whipping the balcony door open and closed, no doubt the state of her living room was going to cause her to have a conniption in the morning, but they were safe in here.

“But maybe I’m not the only one who needs protection. I’m pretty good at defending myself.” Before he had a chance to analyze her comment her lips were on his, he returned the kiss with as much gusto as he could, but he was distracted. What did she mean? Was she implying that he also needed protection? What could he possibly need to be saved from? While he could think of a few things, there was not a single one that he could think of that she should have any reason to even suspect about. The temptation to deepen the kiss was too great considering her battered frame, so he cut it short, hopefully she would understand his reasoning. Pulling her body closer to his once again he wrestled the blanket that he had folded down previously up and over their huddled bodies, so that she wouldn't have to move any time soon. She was on medication if she thought that he was going to go out there tonight, most of all given that he had no cloths to shield his skin from being bashed to bits by the rain and who knows what else was coming down so violently. He never was a big fan of the rain. Once he was satisfied that they were sufficiently covered he succumbed to the mental exhaustion from earlier in a matter of seconds. He stared into the backs of his eyelids as his brain refused to shut off and allow dreams to come, it was going to be a night of very poor sleep, no doubt whenever he woke it would be as if he had just lain down on the pillow. Nights like these were the worst. Sure enough, after what had felt like a minute had passed light was shining in through the gaps in the curtains. It was still raining outside and he could see hints of grey skies. He wasn't surprised that he power was back on, the bathroom light was poking out from under the door to guide his footsteps, for which he was thankful.

From the sounds of it the rain should be letting up in a matter of hours, if not less. The sun was shining brightly and the clouds seemed to be passing by, just dumping the rest of their contents. Not that he minded, sliding his arm out from under Kaydence's sleeping body he pressed his lips to her forehead before easing his way out from under the sheets, attempting to leave as little of notice that he had ever even moved. Taking a moment to stretch and scratch before heading out of the room and toward the bathroom which held his new tooth brush. He hated the fact that the weekend was almost over, he couldn't even remember the last time that he had spent two whole nights with one person, he hadn't even been able to stand his wife for that long. The moment that he stepped into the hall way he was greeted by the mixed odors of fresh rain and damp sand, and stale water. Kaydence was not going to be happy at all that they never had closed that door. Easing into the bathroom he headed straight for the sink to start brushing, and to set about as much of a normal morning routine that he could do with such little things. Taking the toothbrush into the shower with him he rinsed off and washed his hair using her shampoo, leaving him feeling a little feminine but he didn't mind. At least he smelt better. Once he was done he shook off the water like a dog and replaced the toothbrush on the counter, wrapping a towel around his waist since the last of his clothing was now going to be covered in water, no doubt his leather jacket and cell phone were not ruined, no matter where they had gotten off to. Heading out into the living room, leaving the bathroom door open to air out he looked to see if Kaydence was starting to wake yet.

Cautiously, he moved toward the living room to see if perhaps she was in there having a melt down. He didn't see her, checking the balcony to see if she had passed out he wished he had his wand with him to at least fix the hole in her sliding glass door where a chair leg had punctured through. Moving toward the kitchen to locate juice he decided to just be there to help her avoid a total OCD nightmare once she woke up, grabbing a cardboard carton of orange juice out of the door he padded back to the bedroom, drinking intermittently as he went. Sneaking back into the room, or so he thought, he closed the door behind him only to see that she was already awake. Smiling, he offered her a orange juice container. "You're going to need your energy" He said, shaking the carton and letting the contents slosh around "Lots of Calcium and Vitamin C"

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence didn’t realize how tired she was until Ashton had pulled back from their kiss, unaware of how short the kiss actually was. Yawning, she was thankful that he was doing the work for the both of them. If he hadn’t noticed already, when she was tired she became useless. It was due in great part to the babying that her parents had given her one she was younger and never quite being able to snap out of it. If she fell asleep in the living room of the Manor, her dad would pick her up and cradle her as he carried her to the bed. Her mother would have the sheets untucked for her tiny body. As her father set her down on the soft mattress, they would both tuck her in and kiss her lightly before turning out the light and leaving the room. That had been during the good times of her childhood. Way before Darren had even become a concern. Her father may have been the Dark Lord, but his attitude towards his family never displayed it. At least until Darren turned of age and had made his first kill. But that was a completely different story altogether. Kaydence didn’t want to go to sleep with the thoughts of her family on her mind. That would be enough cause for the nightmare to worm its way back into her head and to cause her to wake up in the same manner as she did this morning. She felt a smile cross her features as Ashton stopped moving around her. Snuggling into him, sleep washed over her instantly.

The dreams that night had been much more pleasant. It was uncommon for her to sleep peacefully throughout the night without rousing once. This had been one of those rare occasions. Kaydence would be able to wake up content, ready for whatever the day would bring for her and Ashton. She thoroughly enjoyed waking up in a good mood since it was so rare. She wondered if he’d be able to tell the difference. Feeling movement from beside her, a small smile formed from her lips as she felt his kiss on her forehead. At least nothing had happened during the night that had changed his view of her again. Turning over to her other side, Kaydence fell back asleep almost instantly. Not waking up again until she heard her bathroom door open several minutes later. This time, she yawned and balled up her fists, lifting them to the side and contorting her body into a stretch. She moved her hand back down to her face to wipe the remaining sleep from her eyes. Once finishing, she sighed and looked towards the light in her drapes. It was a dull grey, probably raining still. Fluffing her pillow underneath her head, she turned to face the door and hugged it to her face. She could hear the sounds of Ashton moving around, probably in her kitchen. They had gone to bed without eating after all.

Grinning, she yawned again and waited for him to come back to the bedroom. The throbbing in her back had completely vanished. Now, the only remnants of her pain were just a bit of soreness. Nothing that would prevent her from going out and about today. Or for messing around with him if the tranquil feeling they had both had before bed last night was still present. She saw his dark silhouette coming down the hall. As his footsteps got closer and closer Kaydence saw that he was drinking out of one of her juice cartons. He was completely oblivious to the fact that she was already awake. The fact that he was drinking out of the carton made her cringe for a brief second. He could have at least brought a glass. She would say nothing. This would be the only time she let it slide. Mostly because she was intrigued at what was underneath his towel. She pulled the blanket up underneath her eyes to conceal her lip biting. Dirty thoughts were running rapidly in her head.

Kaydence was pretty sure he had set a record for most smiles within these past two days. It was something she could absolutely get used to. Although she wanted to call him out on it, she figured it probably wouldn’t be the best idea to. He might burst a vein in his forehead, or go home and wallow on how he let her see a side of him that he hadn’t planned on. The latter seemed more likely, but he was probably going to go back to the resort and do it later after whatever time it was they had left expired. Kaydence frowned momentarily at the thought. Ashton always seemed to beat himself up over anything that he did. Besides bedding her of course. From getting a preview of the expressions his face could contort into, she could tell that he had demons inside of him. She knew those looks all too well herself. It was relieving to see that he still looked happy this morning. Kaydence prayed it would keep up. Last night had been enough fighting for her for the remainder of their time together. She pushed her way up to a sitting position as he came closer to the edge of the bed. "You're going to need your energy.” She looked at the carton as he offered it to her. The thought of drinking out of it herself repulsed her. Not because Ashton had drunk it before her. They both shared enough bodily fluids for her to not be intimidated by that. She was hesitant just for the fact of drinking out of the carton. Who knew where it had been or what had happened to it during processing?

Wearily, she took the carton from his extended hand. To actually be considering it was something she would not do. She wondered if he’d be able to tell what a big step this was for her. Bringing the carton back to her Kaydence kept her eyes on Ashton. Although a majority of him had dried off, there were still a few water droplets that remained on his shoulders. How she loved his shoulders. The rest of his exposed torso wasn’t bad either. The bulging muscles from his abdomen were going in and out from his body with every breath he took. She really needed to contain herself. Resting the edge of the carton on her bottom lip, she grinned. “What do I need my energy for?” she finally asked. “Am I going to get see what’s underneath that towel?” Quirking a brow, she kept looking at him as she finally took a sip from the carton.

[Ashton Wentworth]

Crossing to where she sat he couldn't help but smile at the fact that her hair was all a muck, and her clothing wrinkled. Ashton doubted that he was ever going to get a view of her like this again, so he wanted to savor it. Making a mental snapshot he pressed the carton into her outstretched hand, wiping the stray juice from his mouth with the back of the other and wiping it down on the towel about his waist. It was just a handy thing, perhaps if he just chose to wear towels all the time he would be a far more clean person. She seemed apprehensive, but he wasn't going to press her on it, she was going to have a full blown melt down once she opened her door, weather it was the smell or the state of her apartment, she was going to be furious. He just hoped that she wasn't going to blame him for leaving the door open, things had gotten rather heated and he really didn't want to go back into a place like that again. Taking a seat next to her he rearranged his towel to stay covered, waiting for the last bits of his body to finish air drying. Deciding to stay as calm as possible, let he alert her to his real reasoning to being so happy. A part within him was just dying to see the look on her face but knew it was going to be nearly impossible to get out in front of her to really witness the whole thing. With that thought, he found himself wishing that he had just stayed in the living room, kept the juice all to himself and waited. The mental picture of her walking out into the hallway, jaw dropped before turning a dozen shades of red as she turned from angry, to furious to sad, and gave into her cleaning urges. It might have been even more entertaining to let her see it, and then not let her clean it at all. She might just blow a gasket. Smiling his gaze dropped to the floor as he waited to be handed the juice back.

“What do I need my energy for?” The vision of her living room was forced back into focus, he fought off a cringe. Her prolonged eye contact was making him uncomfortable, so he just stared at the carpet. The half of her couch that was closest to the open door was soaked to a strange grey color. Seconds later, the image of her freaking out took place in his mind again. Smiling he clasped his hands together between his knees. He could think of a few dozen different things in the living room that were going to require her whole attention provided her brain didn't implode. However, he had an inkling that she was thinking something that was going to keep them in the bedroom longer, it certainly would be one way to keep her happy for long enough to fully wake up and decide on an action plan for the day. “Am I going to get see what’s underneath that towel?” While he had very much enjoyed the juice, she didn't seem to feel the same way. Her nose crinkled ever so slightly as she took a short sip. He rubbed his palms down the length of his towel clad thighs and smiled. He wanted to take her up on the offer, he could really do a number on her hair and the already crinkled clothing. Glancing over their shoulders toward the window it didn't seem like there would be any point in attempting to venture outside for another while, or any reason that he should attempt to go back to his hotel room, with the overly pressed sheets. Room service would be nice, but having nothing, and nobody to do was boring to him. Giving her a more than obvious once over he gazed wistfully at her hips and shook his head. The last thing he wanted was her to accuse him of stalling, or delaying her eruption, he wanted to come off as innocent as possible.

"Any other time, absolutely" Tugging at the hem of her shirt he knew better by now that she shouldn't hope for any random nudity on her part, but he could still try. "If you still want to see whats under the towel in about five minutes, I will do your bidding" With that he rose to his feet and held out a hand for her to take. Once she accepted he moved behind her, one hand on her stomach and the other covering her eyes, hoping that she wouldn't be able to see. Easing her forward toward the door, he nudged it open with his foot, knowing full well that the smell was going to abuse her nostrils, his face was unsure, not knowing exactly what hew next move would be might be very interesting in bed, but whenever he found himself in situations like this, which was far more often than he liked, it could lead to his impending doom. Bracing himself be moved toward the living room with her in his arms, walking slowly he wanted her to have time to prepare herself for whatever it was that she was going to do, and he hoped that he would be shown some mercy. Standing behind her couch he inhaled deeply "Ta-da" he muttered as his hands dropped, moving to lean against the back of the couch he folded his arms across his chest, it wouldn't be as wonderful as her stumbling upon it, but he should be able to see something interesting happen on her face. He hadn't been joking, and he knew the look on his face was as cautious as a toddler reaching their hand into a cookie jar, and just hoping that their mother was in a good mood. Wishing he could go back and sex her up a bit to put her in a better mood after all he waited.

[Kaydence Morgan]

There was no way he could refuse her offer. Biting down on her lip, she got on her knees to try and look as seductive as possible. She knew he had his attention by the way he looked at her. She knew she looked like a mess, but she also knew that men loved the morning look. Before this weekend, they had never spent the night together. He had seemed to like her when she had just awoken. "Any other time, absolutely.” Her lips formed into a pout. She hated being rejected. Especially when she had done nothing to warrant said rejection. Sitting down on her knees, she folded her arms and hugged them to her chest. “Any other time?” she repeated. “What are you getting at?” Kaydence was confused. Had she done something in her sleep that had upset him? Judging by the look on his face, she doubted it. He looked too amused to be upset with her. Actually, he probably wouldn’t even be in the bedroom if he was angry about something. He’d probably be off in the living room moping. As she thought about the living room, she remembered the blood stain that was waiting for her. Groaning, she moved to the edge of her bed. That would have to be taken care of before she did anything else today.

He stood up and extended his hand in her direction. Kaydence was still upset that she had been rejected, but took it anyway. What was he looking so cheery for? She wondered if he had some sort of surprise waiting for her in the living room. She loved surprises. Feeling a bit of giddiness overcome her Kaydence didn’t protest when his hand covered her eyes. He definitely had something waiting for her. “Alright,” she said in response to his conditions, “but you better promise it. I see no better way to start the morning then romping around in bed.” She allowed him to steer her towards the bedroom door. It was hard to fight the urge not to smile. Not only because she had a present waiting for her, but because Ashton’s mood hadn’t dissipated during the night. If they found some way to keep this up then the remainder of their time together would be able to make up for any hostility they had shown each other throughout the duration of the last few days. The sound of the door opening reached her ears. Her surprise was only a few feet away now. Taking the opportunity to lean back against him Kaydence waited for him to continue walking her down the hall.

A strange odor filled her nostrils as they continued walking further. “What the hell is that smell?” she said aloud. The closer they got, the worse the smell was. Still Ashton said nothing. The excitement that had been in her system was slowly fading away. Kaydence was getting a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. What had happened to her living room? It was when they were nearly to the kitchen that she realized what was going on. It had been storming awfully hard all night long. And she had left Ashton by himself in the living room when she had sauntered off to her bedroom. She had no idea what could he could have done while she had been gone. Her feet began to drag in protest. She really didn’t want to see what would be waiting for her when Ashton pulled his hand away from her eyes. The anger from within her was starting to rise, but she didn’t know who or what would be on the receiving end of it. Suddenly, they stopped. ”Ta-da.” His hand moved away from her face, but Kaydence kept her eyes shut. She didn’t find her obsessive compulsiveness to be funny. Ashton was clearly not aware of how much it pained her to constantly keep everything clean and in order. Well, he was sure to find out in a few seconds.

Taking a deep breath, Kaydence opened her eyes. The sight before her was worse than she could have imagined. There was a hole in her open, glass-sliding door. It’s culprit laying next to it. Her carpet was damp and had turned a hideous grey color. It smelled even worse up close. Putting her hand to her nose she looked over at the blood stain that had resulted from her carpet burn. Out of all things in the living room, that looked the easiest to clean up. The glossed end table on the side of her couch had somehow managed to start rotting on one of the edges. That piece had cost her five hundred galleons. Her hand went to her mouth as her eyes widened. There was so much she wanted to say, to scream. No words came out. Kaydence was stunned. She looked back to Ashton who was leaning on the back of her couch. He was wondering what she was going to do. Her irritation with his false happiness was apparent. She wasn’t sure what she was more upset about. The fact that it was going to take time to clean this mess up, which would absolutely have to be done before anything happened, or that this was the present she had been so eagerly anticipating. Breathing heavily, she turned her wide eyes back to the scene in front of her. She could feel the words that she wanted to say coming to her. Raising her hands to her side, she turned to fully face him. “SERIOUSLY?”

That set her off. “YOU LEFT MY DOOR OPEN?! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH EASIER IT WOULD HAVE BEEN TO CLEAN A TINY SPOT THEN THIS MESS?” Her hands went to her head, pulling at strands off her hair. Kaydence was sure she looked like a crazy person, but she didn’t care. She wanted nothing more than to stomp over to Ashton and smack that amused look off of his face. But her instincts to clean were too overpowering. She continued her tirade as she instead stomped off towards the kitchen. “DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG THIS IS GOING TO TAKE ME?! I’M PROBABLY GOING TO HAVE TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE CARPETING!” She leaned down to grab the excessive cleaning supplies she had stocked underneath her kitchen sink, making sure to throw a pair of gloves on top of the pile. She would have grabbed one for Ashton due to him being the one that destroyed her living room, but he would be unable to clean it the way she felt it needed to be done. Pushing him out of the way would make this whole process even longer. Dumping everything she could into her bucket Kaydence stood back up and made her way into her disgusting living room. “THIS IS SO UNACCEPTABLE!” She dropped the supplies to the floor and opened the glove packet, sliding them onto her hands as she did so. Dropping to her knees, Kaydence ran her gloved hands over the wet spot.

“I’M GOING TO NEED MY WAND FOR THIS!” Kaydence seemed incapable of saying anything normally. That’s what he got for what he had done though. Pushing Ashton on the shoulder as she walked past him, she grabbed her wand that was waiting for her on a table in the hallway. Huffing and puffing, she stormed back to the spot and dropped back to her knees. She muttered incoherent sentences as she sprayed cleaner into the damp spots. “UNBELIEVABLE!” She reached for a sponge and began rubbing it into the affected area, using her wand at the same time to charm a few cleaning spells into her work area. “MERLIN!”

[Ashton Wentworth]

The waiting was the worst, her eyes started to widen, he could only guess as to what she was really feeling and he hated the not knowing. Just yet another drab back to not knowing anything about her other than a basic profile. One hand lifted from where they ha been folded to cover his mouth and chin, waiting for a response from her. To him, the smell wasn't even all that bad. As horrible as that was, he had been in worse and more often than he cared to admit. Sure, it was going to be fun once she realized that she was most likely going to have to bleach the walls. He felt like a child who had brought home a pet spider and then lost it, and was being scolded for bringing a spider into the house in the first place, not to mention losing it. She hadn't even said a word yet, but he hoped he was going to get some kind of brownie points for not only staying and waiting to put up with her tantrum, but also for putting what he assumed would be her need to clean before his own selfish desires for her flesh. Had she not been visibly building up steam he might have attempted to build up a case for his defense, but he could see by her eyes as she clamped her hand down over her face that it wasn't going to help at all. The less he said, the better he assumed. Now, he wasn't sure why exactly he thought that it was going to be amusing, given that he didn't exactly want to fight any more if her if he could avoid it. Surely she was going to assume the worst and think that he had only brought her out here to spark something. Which was not the case, he didn't know much about cleaning, Georgie or house elves had almost always taken care of that task for him, but he imagined that there had to be a spell out there that just sucked all the dirt and nastiness right out. He knew that there was one to get the scum and slime off of one's skin if that person came in contact with the wrong kind of plants, surely there had to be something similar. If not, he might actually start to feel fairly bad.

“SERIOUSLY?” A less than dignified snort left his mouth. It was just dirt, she had a look on her face that said her little world was crashing about her ears. Clamping his hand over his mouth until white started to form around the pads of his fingers he worked to hide his smile. He wasn't sure how exactly he could be laughing at her reaction, but here he was nonetheless. No sooner had the sound left her lips that she seemed to 'pop' “YOU LEFT MY DOOR OPEN?! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH EASIER IT WOULD HAVE BEEN TO CLEAN A TINY SPOT THEN THIS MESS?” He assumed that the tiny spot that she was referencing was where her back had made contact with the carpet, it seemed to him that the water had actually done a good chunk of the work for her there, but it did seem a bit diluted and spread out father than he had remembered. He didn't know personally, but he would assume that it would be about the same amount of work either way since he thought she would just use a spell, if she planned to do it by hand then she really was becoming unhinged. Watching as she crossed over to her kitchen as started banging around he rose from his sitting position to seek out exactly what it was that she thought she was doing in there, he saw her fishing around under the counter “DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG THIS IS GOING TO TAKE ME?! I’M PROBABLY GOING TO HAVE TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE CARPETING!” Sighing he leaned against the counter top "Now you're just being dramatic" he sighed and headed back to the living room, he had no intentions of adding to her dementia. Once in there again he tried to take full access of the damages. Sure, there was some water logged areas, but nothing that seemed irreparable. “THIS IS SO UNACCEPTABLE!” Rolling his eyes as he took full stock of the room he knew that she was making a point, and she was doing so very loudly and with gusto. He got it already. As she slammed down her little bucket and began fussing over her gloves he let out another curt laugh.

As she started to scrub she looked adorable. No other time did he think that she would have lowered herself down and really started scrubbing, she was going to ruin those pants. “I’M GOING TO NEED MY WAND FOR THIS!” It seemed that her voice was stuck at that decibel. Frowning he began to slowly back away from the crazy woman who seemed to be wand hunting. As she clipped his shoulder as the storm that was Kaydence pushed past him he ducked against the far wall, he figured it was best not to be in her direct line of sight whenever she found her wand, especially since he was naked and defenseless. “UNBELIEVABLE!” She had left him alone and begun her spell work, luckily with the state of the carpet she didn't hear him coming up behind her. She was scrubbing her tiny hands for all she was worth. “MERLIN!” Taking his window of opportunity since she had set her sponge down in frustration he seized her by her shoulders, using his upper torso to hoist her off of the floor where she was sitting and rotating to place her on the back of the couch. He would force her to stay if needed. It took a few moments of bobbing and weaving to get her eyes to focus on his, she seemed to be focusing on every little spec of dirt on the carpet "Kaydence. It's just water" he smiled lightly "You will be here all day" It seemed her spells didn't work on such a grand scale as he had been hoping, while they were still cleaning in the little area that she had been focused on earlier he was attempting to calm her down "I can fix the door" He nodded as if to convince her, he had broken too many doors in his day to not know how to fix once such as this "The rest can wait"

[Kaydence Morgan]

There was a spot in the carpet that she was obsessing over. No matter how many times she rubbed at it, the color wasn’t fading. She supposed it was her fault for getting white carpet. Then again, it was his fault for leaving her door open. “Damn…spot,” she grumbled, scrubbing deeper into the carpet fibers. Using her other hand, Kaydence placed the tip of her wand in her workspace. Mumbling another spell, the air instantly began to smell better. At least that had worked for her. She must have looked a funny sight. She could hear Ashton’s laughter in the background, but did her best to tune it out. The more he laughed, the harder she scrubbed. She couldn’t help her cleanliness. When she lived at the Manor, the house-elves had taken a majority of the responsibility away from her. Now that she was on her own, it was up to her to keep her living quarters presentable at any and all times. Regardless of whether or not there was company, which before Ashton, there had been none. Sighing, she used the bare skin from her wrist to wipe away the small beads of sweat that had formed. Kaydence felt disgusting. She hadn’t brushed her teeth or showered yet. She hoped her cleaning wouldn’t take too much longer. Her need to feel clean herself was overbearing. Actually, she didn’t know which was worse. Her need to be clean or her living room.

Letting the sponge drop from her hand Kaydence felt her body being lifted from the ground. “What the…” was all she managed to say before she was placed on the back of her couch like a child. “What are you doing?!” she exclaimed, bobbing her head in every direction to focus on the mess that still needed to be cleaned. Ashton, in turn, moved his own head at her pace, trying to catch her gaze with his eyes. The charming spells she had placed on the area were still scrubbing away, releasing the fresh linen aroma she had bewitched. ”Kaydence, it’s just water.” Just water? Did he not know that when water seeped into something and settled that it caused the horrendous stink they had walked into earlier? Surely he had enough sense to realize that you don’t just let water sit. She scoffed at him. ”You will be here all day.” If she had her way about it she wouldn’t be spending her whole day in the condo. “You must be mental,” she told him, not caring about whether he took it seriously or not, “it has been settling into the carpet for hours now! Don’t try to lie to me and tell me that you’ve been unable to notice the foul smell in the air. My condo shouldn’t smell like moldy rainwater!” ”I can fix the door.” The door was the least of her worries right now. As long as the rain continued falling slowly, then she could place her bucket underneath it.

”The rest can wait.” Ashton was driving her crazy. Throwing her hands up in frustration, she crossed them to her chest as they dropped. Tilting her head to the side, she refused to look at him. No amount of cute smiles would pull her out of this mood. Not when he was preventing her from cleaning up her apartment. The charms she had cast on the carpet would only work by themselves for a little while longer. If she wasn’t here to make sure they kept doing their job, Kaydence was going to have to do everything by hand. She knew she was acting childish, but anything was better than having to admit defeat. She considered trying to dart past him and lunging at the carpet, but she had a feeling he would catch her as she tried to jump away from him. If not that, he would almost certainly wrestle her to the carpet and her clothes would get soaked in the chemicals being used on the floor. They would stain her clothes and she would flip out once again, personally escorting him out of her condo and locking the door behind him. Then who would be laughing as he was forced to walk back to his suite in nothing more than a towel. She smirked at the thought. It was so tempting, but the thought of a shower was even more appealing.

Standing up, she rolled her eyes as Ashton tried to block her way. “I’m taking a shower,” she informed him, leaving him at his position as she head towards her bedroom. She could make a break for the carpet, but he would still find some way to pull her back. Kaydence had no choice but to retreat back to her bedroom. She slammed the bedroom door behind her, something she knew he was all too familiar with now. Sliding her way out of her clothes she put them in her hamper and walked into her bathroom. She let the shower run for a minute or so and jumped in after seeing steam cascade over her curtain. Kaydence took an extra couple of minutes scrubbing off to make sure that she had rinsed any of the cleaning liquids off of her. Once satisfied, she turned off the shower and stepped out, wrapping herself in the towel that Ashton hadn’t taken. Her next step was to brush her teeth. She took another extra couple of minutes to assure herself of minty freshness. She grabbed her mouthwash afterwards and gurgled. If she was going out in public, Kaydence needed to make sure that everything about her was perfect. She dried her hair off and wandered back into her bedroom to head into her closet. She pulled at the first pair of shorts that her hands found and a tank top that was next to it. Easing her way into the clothing Kaydence pulled her damp hair out from the top.

It was a rarity for Kaydence to appear in public without some sort of make-up, but today was going to be one of those. By the looks of it, it was drizzling and she didn’t want to worry about mascara running down her face. Instead, she chose a pair of sunglasses from her vanity and slid them up the bridge of her nose. Satisfied with her appearance, she slid her feet into a pair of flip-flops and opened the bedroom door, only to find Ashton waiting for her. “I need to go get you some clothes,” she told him. “Besides, you could use a new wardrobe. That shirt you were wearing last night looked like it was ready to fall apart.”

[Ashton Wentworth]

It took every iota of self restraint in his body to not burst out laughing as her hands. Once more bringing his hand up to cover the lower portion of his face he didn't understand what this burning need to be tidy of hers was. He understood hygiene and he understood her apartment being clean since she obviously didn't work, but other than boredom he didn't get it. He was here now, that should be enough of a distraction for her to leave her charms to work in her wake. Unless she was that lousy as spell work. Given that she had said she was head girl he doubted it, there was no way that she would be bad at them unless she was very good at hexes and used that to get to the top. He didn't doubt it, but he figured she had gotten there the old fashioned way. Her eyes were only focused on his face every ten seconds or so, she seemed to be plotting her escape route, given that he was probably the most clean thing in this room, he figured that she should have been clinging to him, climbing up his body like a spider money or some other ridiculous creature. “I’m taking a shower,” His body tensed, ready to body check her if need be but she seemed to mean what she was saying for once and headed directly to the bathroom. As he heard the little door click shut and water come on he figured that he should be able to go and hunt the kitchen without running the risk of her darting out to resume her position on the floor. Crazy Witch. Stopping first in the bedroom to snatch up the rest of the juice container he sniffed the opening once and shrugged as he brought it to his lips and tilted the container back. Swallowing as he headed in the direction of the kitchen he considered putting the carton back into the fridge but that would run the risk of her just tossing all the remainder and wasting juice. Rolling his eyes he just set the remaining bits on the counter and pulled out a bagel and popped it in her toaster.

As he waited for his bland breakfast to finish toasting he took a seat on her stool, attempting to fill his stomach with the remainder of the orange juice, he hated boring food. He didn't eat all that often, he wasn't a glutton but he did enjoy eating but whatever meal he was going to have he liked to have some taste to it. He didn't much care for bland things that would only serve to sustain him unless he was in situations like this very one. Rising to grab half of the bagel he left the other in the toaster because he heard the water shut off, wandering back into the living room to stand as guard between her and the mess she just crossed into her bedroom and hid away again. Rolling his eyes for the millionth time he polished off the bagel half in only a few bites, heading to retrieve the other and finish his juice. “I need to go get you some clothes,” He was stopped before he could finish his quest because she had reemerged from her bedroom fully dressed and ready to go somewhere, he just didn't know where. Glancing out the still open Balcony door he noted that it was still grey and sprinkling, yet she was in shorts and flip flops. He hadn't even thought about clothing, he had just assumed that they were going to spend the day holed up here, unless he had to run downstairs for cigarettes, this was the longest time he had gone without a smoke since he had found out that Georgie had lung cancer. His lungs were starting to ache to the point the he considered rolling up a hunk of carpet and smoking that, it would have the same basic effect. Cringing at the thought he agreed that they were going to need to leave her home at some point. He could always just walk back to his room in his suite in the towel, nobody would think twice about it if it had been sunny out side. They would just assumed he had wrapped it around his swim trunks to keep from excess dripping, but since it was dark outside, nobody would think that he had been swimming, not so long as they assumed that he was sane anyway.

Either way, he wasn't going to allow her to go and purchase him anything, he had never let a woman buy him cloths other than his mother and he wasn't about to start now. He would rather stretch something of hers out. He was happy in his towel. Turning to get the juice again rather than dignify her comment with a response he heard her call after him “Besides, you could use a new wardrobe. That shirt you were wearing last night looked like it was ready to fall apart.” Stopping dead in his tracks he turned around and came back into the living room, what was wrong with his cloths? They wee worn, but they were comfortable. He liked them that way. His eyes narrowed, he had tossed that shirt from last night but only because he didn't like the smell of bar clinging to him, he was comfortable just the way he was. "Where are we going that I need nice cloths?" he spat, he didn't want to be insulted because of his clothing, he had been mostly naked for the better part of the weekend, and didn't mind staying that way for as long as he wanted. He didn't have to wear cloths until he went back into the office tomorrow. Deciding not to fight he tried for the third time to get and get his juice, this time he succeeded and downed the remnants of the carton, leaving it on the counter out of spite. It was a small victory, but a victory none the less. Adjusting the towel around his waist he headed back into the living room and crossed directly to the couch, where his ruined jacket still lay. Fishing out the small bag he kept his coin in, and thankfully his room key he then moved to the door and yanked it open, if she insisted on his wearing clothing he could either just go back to his room or he would buy them himself. Leaving the rest of his possessions behind in her waterlogged condo he motioned for her to come with him, not the least bit embarrassed by his appearance even though it was likely that she was going to be and began to make his way down the hallway of her building.

[Kaydence Morgan]

It took every ounce of her not to rush back towards her destroyed living room. If it hadn’t been for Ashton’s irritating guard stance, she would have. Kaydence wondered how distracted he would be if she tore off his towel and then bolted to water damaged carpet. She wouldn’t put it past him to tackle her down naked though. Sure she’d get a second or two head start, but he would more than likely be able to tackle her before she even stepped foot in her work area. Not that it would be a bad thing. She didn’t get tackled to the ground by a naked man very often, especially not one as attractive with their clothes off as him. She imagined it wouldn’t be too hard for her to get distracted from the mess awaiting her cleaning. However, it was highly possible that he would torture her more by giving it to her next to the wet carpet, just for his own amusement. Kaydence frowned at the thought. Ashton’s sense of humor was sickening. Even Evan hadn’t gotten this much pleasure out of making her miserable. He had his own methods of torture, but after realizing how bad her OCD was, he stepped out of the way to let her do what she needed to get it out of her system. She wished that Ashton would have the same respect, but given his character, it was something she would have to get accustomed to if he was going to stick around.

Kaydence got some pleasure from insulting his wardrobe. It was the least she could do given to the state of her living room and his involvement in it. ”Where are we going that I need nice clothes?” She didn’t know how to respond. She wasn’t the type of woman who would be seen with some frumpy, disheveled looking male. While Ashton had the rugged looks she wouldn’t mind being seen in public with, his clothing was not up to par with a woman of her standard. He could do with a few plaid shirts. Actually, he could do with any shirts that weren’t so worn in you could see through them. “If you’re we are going to be seen out in public together,” she began, moving past him to get a few coins from her table in the hallway, “you’re going to need to look like you aren’t so homeless.” Secretly, she hoped he would take offense to it. He still needed payback for what she had to do when she came back. Plus she really did have an image to upkeep. If he expected any different from her, then he had severely mistook her for someone else. Her eyes closed into small slits as she watched him walk away from the empty juice carton. Why did he insist on driving her crazy? Avoiding the container, she would clean it up later like she was being forced to do with her carpet, Kaydence stalked off and grabbed her purse while Ashton dug around in his own jacket.

Ashton walked towards the door and Kaydence followed behind. He opened the door causing her to smirk. At least he had some sort of manners in that thick skull of his. Instead of waiting to close the door behind her he stepped through it and out of sight. What on earth was he doing? Quickening her pace Kaydence trailed behind him and watched him walk down the hallway. There was no way he would be doing what she thought he was trying to do. She ran towards him as he stopped at her elevators, slapping his hand away before he got the chance to push the down button. “What are you doing?” she questioned, following suit from earlier and putting herself in way of him and the callbox. “Aren’t you forgetting something?” Her eyes wandered down to the towel. “You don’t even have shoes on.” Lowering her glasses down the bridge of her nose, Kaydence crossed her arms. “Well?”

[Ashton Wentworth]

The air in Kaydence's apartment had been warm enough due to the fact that she had a large hole letting in all the outside air. It was still sprinkling outside but the sun was out, albeit hidden behind a mass of clouds. The air in the hallway was still stale and air conditioned, freezing compared to her apartment. Wishing for a split second that he had reconsidered her offer instead letting his pigheadedness take control. Grasping the part of the towel that was turned into itself to keep from falling he frowned and began walking down the long hallway toward the elevator, cringing every time that he stepped under an air vent. There sure were a lot of apartments in this building. About halfway down the hall he heard the slapping of her shoes coming up behind him, smirking because she was going to have to do something his way for once, he didn't like being insulted. If she didn't like his clothing, then he could not wear any. If that just wasn't suitable for her, then she could seek alternate company. He didn't have to stick around if she didn't like the way he looked, he sure knew that she liked the way that she felt, but if the rest was too hard for her to process, he didn't need another woman telling him what to do. There had been dozens of times whenever Georgie had come home after one of her own infamous shopping trips with at least two bags of things for him, she didn't like his style much either. He had forced her to return them as soon as she had shown them to him, fighting had ensued. After a few times of trying to change the way that he dressed she realized it would just be best to purchase newer versions of his current outfits, wash them so get rid of the new cloths feel and replace the ones that had been there. He noticed, but was less likely so complain. She got to see him in new cloths, and yet he still got to keep his old wardrobe. It was a win-win for the two of them. He hated nothing more than whenever she dragged him from store to store, making him try on outfits, and she would always be so upset whenever she would come out to find him flirting with the bikini saleswoman. What did she expect? Place a man in a desert and he will find food. He didn't get the difference.

Kaydence was not his wife, nor was she even his girlfriend. Technically since nothing was verbalized she wasn't anything official to him. Yet, she was trying to change him nonetheless. He wore the cloths that he did for a reason, each item was either beyond comfortable, or had a history to it. He was sentimental about the oddest things and he was alright with that. Her comment about not wanting to be seen out in public with him had struck deep, weather she knew it or not. He had been told that all his life, that he was great behind closed doors, but not 'boyfriend' material. Which at the time had been great, he didn't mind one bit in those days. Given that he had put himself out there for her he had expected a little bit more from her. She had no way of knowing but he would be so upset, and she had no way of knowing that he really had extended an olive branch earlier. Yet, for some reason he just wanted her to know already. The process of getting to know somebody was exhausting. Not that they were really putting forth much of an effort to dig any deeper than surface levels of information, he knew that there was something deeper that she just didn't care to divulge, which was fine, he didn't trust her enough to tell her the stories of his life just yet, and he doubted that he ever would truly feel that he trusted her enough for anything of that nature. Besides, he looked homeless because he was homeless. As he approached his destination his pace slowed, he could hear her coming up ever faster behind him. The hand that wasn't being used to hold up his towel reached forward to the elevators call button. He could summon the damned thing and be on his way. Weather she chose to come with him or not that was her choice, he didn't even care at this point. If she was just going to keep being snotty then he didn't much want to continue their weekend together, she could find somebody else to pass the time with. Why she always insisted on bringing out the worst in him he had no idea, she always seemed to want him to be in a bad mood or arguing with her.

His jaw began to pulse as she swatted away his hand. Glaring at her he checked the back of his hand where it was starting to turn a very light shade of pink. It was all together unnecessary. “What are you doing?” His tried and true 'seriously?' look dominated his features, obviously he was trying to call the elevator, why else would he have been reaching for the damned button? “Aren’t you forgetting something?” His eyebrow cocked, he couldn't think of anything that he had forgotten, unless she wanted him to go all the way back down the hall and gather up the remnants of his things and be on his merry way, but he didn't think that was what she was referring to. Glancing at her face for some sort of indication he frowned at finding nothing. Then her eyes wandered down to his towel. She was seriously complaining that he was in a towel? She honestly expected him to sit on his thumbs while she went down and found something for him that she deemed suitable, no doubt something starchy and horrible that he would have to burn. No sense in wasting money, he didn't have an abundance of it like she seemed to. He thought it had been fairly obvious that he was going to go down with her, or not at all. Besides, she wasn't going to be allowed to spend any money on his either. "I can leave the towel in your condo if you want" Assuming that she want only wanting to keep her possessions, it was fair after all, if he made it all the way to the beach, he was likely to leave it somewhere and forget about it. Since it was currently service as his clothing he would keep if for now, but it would likely be submitted to the hotel for cleaning and then kept if he made it all the way to his suite before finding clothing. “You don’t even have shoes on.” Sighing he moved her body out of the way and pressed the call button for the lift. “Well?” "It's a beach Kaydence! I don't need shoes!" even if he had put on shoes it would have been his large boots and he didn't want to go through the hassle of pulling them free from the wet sand every few moments. If they were going to one of the restaurants and they had a shoe policy then he would just stand on the top step leading into the establishment until they threw him out or let him in.

The elevator must have been on the floor that they were on since the doors opened no sooner than he had pressed the button. Ignoring her silly pleas for clothing he stepped onto the lift, hand still fastened around the towel. Pressing the button for the lobby he used his free arm to hold the doors open. She could join him if she wished, but to do so would mean that she was going to have to at least pretend to accept him for who he was. He wasn't going to be her little call boy who would be in her bed and nowhere else, then they would be moving backwards. Been there, done that already and he wasn't interested in doing it again. He stared at her expectantly, waiting to see weather or not she was going to join him in their trip down to the elevator. He didn't plan on staying in the towel, but he might just do that if she was going to keep acting embarrassed like she was. He didn't mind giving her a bit of payback for the insulting of his appearance. She might be polished all the time, but it hadn't skipped his notice that she wasn't wearing make up, he didn't mind but was prepared to call her on it if she felt the need to call him a hobo again. Whenever at first she didn't move he took a step back lest she have to make bodily contact with him to get into the lift. "You can always take the stairs if you don't want to even share a lift with me" Try as he might to keep the hurt out of his voice, it still lingered beneath the disdain.

[Kaydence Morgan]

”I can leave the towel in your condo if you want.” Everything he did always seemed to irritate her. Anything he said, any look he gave, any mannerisms he displayed. It all irked her. The only thing that didn’t make her want to pull her hair out strand by strand was when he smiled at her. Or when he seemed to know exactly what needed to be done to ease any stress she visibly showed. He was a strange creature. A puzzle whose pieces were so scattered that it would take her an endless amount of time to find them all and put them back together. Kaydence would have to seriously consider whether or not she had the patience to try and start solving it. She had so much on her plate already as it was. Between plotting against her brother and trying to maintain as normal and stable life as she possibly could, she didn’t need the extra stress. Ashton would inevitably be extra stress. He was proving it now by insisting on going down to the beach area with her in a bloody towel. She was not a woman who was fun and carefree. Kaydence stuck to her norms and that was that. If he couldn’t handle being with a woman like her, then he was not worth her time, no matter how good he was in bed or that funny feeling she had gotten when they had gone to bed last night and snuggled.

She didn’t protest as her body was moved. "It's a beach Kaydence! I don't need shoes!" He may have had a point, but the thought of his dirty feet coming back into her already messy apartment was horrifying. If he insisted on protesting, then he would have to go back to his suite to clean up or use the soap and water she would provide for him to clean his feet outside of her door. A little extreme, but she was a little over excessive. Sighing, she closed her eyes and leaned her head back on the wall. She could feel the elevator doors sliding open but she made no move to walk into them. Her mind briefly flash backed to the last time her and Ashton had taken an elevator ride. While the circumstances were much different, Kaydence couldn’t help but to feel a bit of fear in joining him. He had done nothing to physically harm her last time, just shook her up a bit. Kaydence didn’t like to be shook up though, especially at the hands of a man she barely knew. Opening her eyes, she looked over to watch him disappear into the elevator. Perhaps she would take the stairs or just wait for the next elevator.

The sight of his hand appearing to restrain the door caused that familiar puzzled look to return to her face. After the way he had responded to her Kaydence was sure he would have wanted to leave her up there to think about what she said. She stepped forward to get a better look at him. His expectant gaze met her eyes. It was then that those conflicting feelings arose again. She didn’t know whether to stay or go with him. She felt like Ashton constantly tested her as if seeing how much she could handle before rewarding her for passing his expectations with flying colors. If this was how it felt when she did the same to him, Kaydence wasn’t quite sure of how she liked it. She had never had a normal relationship with a man, whether it was romantic or casual. The males she involved herself with always had something wrong with them. For once, she just wanted to have her every wish and commanded abided to. She wanted no question, no resilience, just obeying. The chances of that actually happening in her lifetime were slim to none. Kaydence would never be able to find the perfect man who accepted her for the way she was and didn’t try to hold it against her.

"You can always take the stairs if you don't want to even share a lift with me.” The look in his eyes was so pitiful. It seemed that he had actually taken what she said to heart. So much for the tough exterior he constantly tried to uphold. There was the soul of a man within that thick skin. Not saying anything, Kaydence stepped in and confound herself to the opposite site of the elevator. She crossed her arms as the elevator door closed. The same drone music played as she felt them being lowered from floor to floor. The music didn’t help with her mood any either. A twang of guilt was making its ever present presence known. Glancing over at him, she noticed the satisfaction he had that she had gotten on the elevator with him, but still couldn’t get past the sad eyes she had seen only moments earlier. Regardless of the image she portrayed, Kaydence did have a heart. And it was pumping out more guilt by the second. She had never fully learned the concept of knowing when to keep her mouth shut. Growing up, she hadn’t been taught to hold her tongue. If she found something bothersome, then she had to verbalize it otherwise nothing could be done to fix it. There had been countless amounts of people that she had belittled for such small and silly things but to her they were an annoyance. Kaydence knew she held a lot of hatred within her bones and lashed out at people so often as a result. It had become a part of her though. She called it like she saw it and people should have known what to expect when coming face-to-face with her.

Kaydence shook her head to herself as the elevator finally stopped. Using this as her moment, she said a quick, “Sorry” to him as she stepped out in front of him and began walking. Hopefully he would understand that she meant her apology. She was never good at saying sorry for things she knew she was wrong for. If Ashton hadn’t picked that up by now then he was much more stupid then he let on. Pushing her way out of the entrance doors Kaydence hurried to the steps leading down to the beach and walked down them. It was still hard for her to accept that she had apologized so she needed a minute or two to get her thoughts back together before continuing her time with Ashton. He would just have to deal with it.